Manchester City Director of Football Defends Citizens Heavy Spending Against Rivals
Manchester City director of football Txiki Begiristain has come to the defence of City's heavy spending record during his time at the club.
City achieved a transfer window record last summer, as they spent more than any club has in one window, with purchases of arrivals of Kyle Walker, Bernardo Silva, Ederson and Benjamin Mendy among others.
In total the Citizens have spent around £280m on new players in the 2017/18 season, which has led critics to argue that their heavy investment in the transfer market is damaging the sport.
However, speaking to Argentine site Infobae, via Manchester Evening News, Begiristain fought back against critics.
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He said: “If you look at the 10 most expensive signings of all time, none of them play for City.
“Do we have [Paul] Pogba, [Romelu] Lukaku, Neymar or [Kylian] Mbappe? Of course, we made an important investment in the transfer market because we had to change the age of the squad.
“But all of the players we bought would now be worth £100m. And, in addition, Manchester City now earns a lot of money.
“In the last three years, we have not spent more than we have raised economically, so I see no reason for criticism.”
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Since their record-breaking window, City have been a completely different side to the one that went trophyless last campaign. They now lead the Premier League by 13 points, they have already won the League Cup and are now in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
It is fair to suggest that their lucrative spending has played a part in this as an influx of quality, expensive players is usually going to improve performances. However, this is not the whole story, as the system that Pep Guardiola has implemented in the squad has been the main reason for their success.
City play next on Monday night in their game away to Stoke City. Stoke are struggling and are currently second from bottom, so the Blues will look towards a comfortable win.
